Hundreds of thousands of pounds secured to fight violence in Nottinghamshire

The funding will be used to steer young people away from violence and make Nottinghamshire safer after a successful bid by Nottinghamshire Police and Crime Commissioner Caroline Henry, and comes as a further boost after national figures released last week showed violence with injury fell by 25 per cent and knife crime fell by 15 per cent in Nottinghamshire in the last financial year.

The money will be used to expand the work of the Nottingham City and Nottinghamshire Violence Reduction unit, which continues to work with vulnerable individuals and families to help understand the root causes of violent crime, make a difference to young lives and put them on the road to a safer and more positive future.

Commissioner Henry said: "Nottinghamshire is at the forefront of violence prevention and this funding is clear evidence the Government is supportive of our approach.

"I made it clear to the Home Secretary that there is so much more we can do with further funding and I am delighted she has clearly listened to my case.

"I was honest when I said I would fight hard to get Nottinghamshire the funding it needed to keep our streets safe. I intend to bring more prevention and diversion schemes to Nottinghamshire in the future because they work and change lives.

"Results matter and I want to be a Commissioner who not only listens but delivers measurable success. Every crime, every victim and every neighbourhood matters and I am playing my part to make a difference."

The funding and boost to the unit will add to the number of ways Nottinghamshire Police and partner agencies continue to tackle violent crime.

Nottinghamshire’s Police now has two dedicated knife crime teams following a doubling in resources within the team earlier this year.

Superintendent Kathryn Craner, Nottinghamshire Police’s knife crime lead, said: “The unit does some extremely important work, engaging with vulnerable young people, helping them understand the dangers of knife crime and supporting them on the road to a safer and more positive future.

"Additional funding will only increase their capacity and equip them with the resource needed to help more people, which is positive for Nottinghamshire.”